In 2010, I shot this vertical panel of the “Love Locks” on the “Pont des Arts” in Paris. At that time, only a few locks were there. Please read what is happening now:

(Quoted from Daniel Stone / National Geographic)

“In a city where it has known no bounds, love now has a weight limit. Shortly after 5 p.m. on Sunday, June 8, a railing of the Pont des Arts—a pedestrian bridge in Paris that spans the Seine River near the Louvre—buckled under the weight of thousands of padlocks.

The recent railing collapse isn’t the first. Last February another railing gave way. Officials evacuated the bridge and removed the damaged section, an architect was rushed to the scene to evaluate the integrity of the bridge, and maintenance crews with bolt cutters removed several hundred locks. Less than 24 hours later, the bridge was open for business as usual. Vendors sold postcards, miniature Eiffel Tower reproductions—and more love locks.The padlocks are, so to speak, a public expression of love. Couples, mainly tourists, buy them from vendors on the bridge, inscribe or write their names (Kevin & Camille ♥ ♥) on them, lock them to the railing, and throw the key into the water.

The current lock craze is relatively recent and owes much to social media sites like Twitter and Instagram, which helped spread the practice across Europe and eventually around the world, to places as far away as China.”

Detail Shot of the Love Locks by Kristy Sparrow